Metroid, an action-adventure video game designed for the Nintendo in 1986.

At first glance, they're not an obvious pairing. But in 8-Bit Philosophy, a web series that explains philosophical concepts by way of vintage video games, things kind of hang together.

Gamers remember Metroid for being the first video game to feature a strong female protagonist, a character who blew apart existing female stereotypes, kicked some alien butt, and created new possibilities for women in the video gaming space. And that lets Metroid set the stage for talking about the intellectual contributions of Simone de Beauvoir, who, back in the late 1940s, gave us new ways of thinking about gender and gender-based hierarchies in our societies.

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